The Pirate's Oracle
by Lady-Pyrien
Summary: For as long as the people can remember, the kingdom is blessed with twins, the king or queen and the oracle. One to rule and the other to guide. The positions are highly revered by all... except the oracle. A life of absolute chastity, pure diet and no sins. It was supposed to be a blessing. However, to young Lovino, it is everything but. Is the life of a pirate any better?
1. Chapter 1

_My new obsession is PortMano, so i'm sorry to my SpaMano fans..._

* * *

**_The Pirate's Oracle_**

**_Chapter One: The Kingdom's Treasure_**

* * *

It was long, long ago when the kingdom discovered their great gifts. A thousand or two years prior, all of the great kingdoms were at war for land. The weakest of the kingdoms was barely more than a peasant farm or two and a fort held together by god knows what. A young man and his wife prayed they not be destroyed and live in peace. Months later, the woman gave birth to twins. While they didn't look like much at birth, they were the answer to their prayers.

One child was completely normal. He was happy and ran around and played. The other was disabled. Born completely blind. Anyone else would have disposed of such a burden, but the man and wife loved both children and raised them well. It was when the blind child began having vivid dreams, they began seeing his disability for what it truly was: a gift.

These dreams were prophecies brought on by the decisions his father and twin and mother made.

Each one after the other proved to come true. Soon, this gift was used to win more and more land and bring peace to the warring kingdoms because with their oracle, there was no way they would lose.

From that point on, when the oracle died, his or her twin's bloodline would flourish and bring forth a new oracle and heir pair.

At the dawning of a new kingdoms, two boys were born. Feliciano and Lovino. As the years had passed, new traditions to make the visions stronger and more accurate were put into play. No longer could the oracle's mind be distracted with play and stories. Immediately upon weaning from the breast, the oracle was taken from their mother and raised as nothing less than a god.

Lovino was in such a position now, but to him, it was not a gift, but rather: A curse. He could not drink fermented drinks like beer or wine. He could not have meat, to taint his mind. He could not play, not be touched by anyone but his hand maids and personal guard, all carefully chosen. He could not love or dirty his body with intercourse or even self-pleasing.

He didn't grow up with his brother, nor did he ever see his mother or father. He sat upon his throne outside among the people as the celebrated his gift. Seer's Day was something that changed with each new oracle. Set on the day of their first vision, it was a mass festival to show love and gratefulness for all that Lovino had given them.

Antonio stood close to Lovino as the oracle stared blankly into the crowds. His hand maid held his cup of water beside him. While he appreciated the praise, he would much rather be in his room.

He knew his brother was beside him, also enjoying the festivities, but he couldn't muster anything to say to the other. This was one of the only times, outside their weekly meetings, that they spent any time together. Lovino did not know what to say. He was honestly frustrated and jealous. Feliciano was given the freedom to do whatever he pleased. He could sleep with the town, he could marry multiple women or men, he could wait until Lovino was dead to finally have children. The new king had anything he could wish for all because his duties lied with Lovino's visions.

A young woman approached with a basket filled with fresh, sweet berries. She knelt down and offered them, which they were taken by a hand maid.

"Thank you, your grace for all that you do for us. I can't imagine a life without the family and the things I have that you work so hard to protect for us…" she moved to leave, but Lovino stopped her.

"Wait… there's something I see… come closer, please…" he offered his hand and his guard let her through.

She trembled lightly as she wiped her hand off on her dress and put her hand in his. Never before had anyone in her family gotten this close to the oracle. She felt unworthy.

Lovino's eyes dulled even more than they already were and he smiled, "The child you bear in your womb will do wonderful things for the kingdom. You should be proud… You've made a wonderful life for them and for your family." He pulled away and leaned back.

She smiled, tears pricking her eyes, "Thank you, your grace.." she touched her stomach and went to find her husband.

It wasn't long after, he sighed, "Antonio, I wish to go back to my room. Elaine, go set up my bath." The maid nodded and ran off to set things up for him.

Antonio offered his arm for Lovino to take so he could lead him back to the palace.

Lovino walked in silence, staring into nothing as he clung to the guard's arm and walked. He could smell the crisp cleanliness of Antonio's uniform. He nuzzled his face against the man's sleeve. Antonio did his job, but he did so in a way that gave Lovino something to look forward to every night. A warm voice to joke around with him and laughter. Antonio treated him like more than an oracle. He let him know he was still human.

"We're almost to your room, my lord." The guard spoke softly, his voice sending warm fuzzies into Lovino.

"Thank you. I know it must be awful, toting around a blind seer."

Antonio's laughter resounded through the empty halls of the palace, "Not at all~" he said, stopping to look at him, "I've never enjoyed myself more than when I get to stand by your side and protect you…"

There was always something comforting about that voice.  
"Thank you…" Lovino said softly.

The two continued through the halls at a slow pace. Once they were at the room, Antonio walked Lovino in and over to his bed. Lovino sat down. Antonio began to leave, but Lovino reached out to him, "I want you to stay and tell me stories again."

"You know I got in trouble the last time I did that…" he said softly.

"I don't care." Lovino huffed. He got up and walked quickly to his bathing room. Since he'd been in this room since birth, he knew it very well. No amount of blindness slowed him down, "Stories, now."

Antonio shook his head and followed him. He stood at the door while Lovino stripped and sank into the water. Once he was settled, Antonio sat down in the door and told Lovino his favorite story. It was about two brothers as different as night and day. One rose at dawn and the other slept in. One loved adventure and the other loved being at home. He told him about the adventurous brother getting into trouble one day and running away, while the second brother vowed to find him and stop him from hurting people. It all seemed so heroic the way Antonio made it seem.

By the time he was done, Lovino was done bathing. He stood up and dried off before grabbing a simple pair of pants. He pulled them on and made his way to the bed, "Good night Antonio." The young man said.

"Good night, my lord. Sleep well and wish that hero luck~" he chuckled before leaving the room.

Lovino let the silence take over the room. He hated silence. The prince spent as much time in silence as he had spent living. It drove him insane, but he knew it was because they believed that his visions were stronger. However, they didn't know that it didn't matter if he was in silence or had instruments in his ears, the visions were the same.

He curled up and began singing a song he heard once a year on his birthday, when his mother would sit outside his door in the middle of the night and sing to him. He desperately wanted to be with her, to be the son she got to hold and cuddle.

Lovino pulled his pillow over his head and let out a soft breath. It wasn't long before he'd fallen asleep.

_There was a man… his stormy eyes fierce. He held onto a rope as his ship drifted into port. _

_ Now he had something in his arms… he rushed… guards would notice, he was afraid, fearful of being caught. What was that…?_

_ The guards yelled, something important… a treasure…? Feliciano stood on the balcony, his posture stiff, but his eyes worried. Something important was taken. The pirate took it. Wealth… treasure… those words stuck out. Had the pirate taken valuables? Yes, that seemed right… _

Lovino jerked awake, sweat beading down his face and back. He jumped out of the bed and ran to the door, "Antonio! I must go see my brother!"

Antonio nodded and let Lovino grab onto his arms before he began hurrying down the halls towards the king's room. Once there, the guard pushed it open.

"Your majesty?"

Feliciano jolted upright and whined. He slid out of bed, much to the annoyance of his current bed partner. "What…?"

Lovino wrinkled his nose. He hated the smell of sex on his brother. "You reek…" he hissed, "And it's important… I had a vision. An important one, too. A pirate… he's on his way to steal your wealth and if you don't act fast, he'll succeed."

Feliciano nodded, "Take my brother to his room and then go ready soldiers to filter through the streets to find this supposed pirate. I want him in chains and locked away. Station someone or three at the treasury as well. Anything else in the castle isn't worth enough to take guards away from patrol."

"Yes, your majesty." Antonio bowed before taking Lovino back towards his room, "It's imperative you stay in your room, my lord."

Lovino scoffed, "What else is new…?" he slipped into his room and the door shut behind him. He trembled lightly. He hated being alone… He'd been alone all his life. He recalled times Feliciano had gotten hurt and everyone rushed to appease him. However, if Lovino bumped against something, he got a new nurse to watch over him, one that would 'do her job'. His mother never came to comfort him at night when he woke screaming from a particularly terrifying vision. He walked over and sat down on his chair, however, missed and landed on the floor, "ow!" he hissed, getting up, "I'm going to kill whoever moved this!" he snapped, tears sliding down his face. It didn't hurt too much, but it was enough to leave him pushed over the edge. Everything wrong with his life came crashing down, leaving him sobbing, pleading with the gods for a better life…

The door opened and he wiped his face, "Did you find that pirate?"

Antonio's voice answered, "Yeah, we have him. Everything is fine now. But I have wonderful news… You were just in time to catch him before he did something awful, his majesty is rewarding you well. He wants you to enjoy a walk through the gardens."

Lovino snorted and rubbed his face, "I could use a walk…" he got up and pulled on his robes. He pulled up the hood and walked over to take the man's arm. They walked down the halls in silence, taking turns and went outside. Lovino sighed softly as the fresh air hit him. He leaned his head against the man's arm and inhaled his scent and paused, "You smell different… like … like the sea…" his eyes widened and the man, he knew now wasn't Antonio, tied a cloth around his mouth and scooped him up. He felt him begin running. He pounded his fists against him before reaching up to pull down the cloth. They came to a stop where the pirate tied his hands together and threw him over his shoulder.

"Troublesome little shit aren't ya…?" he said, his voice changed from mimicking his guard's to a bit deeper.

Lovino kicked his legs, trying to escape, but it was no use. The sound of the sea hitting shore hit his ears and he felt more tears roll down his cheeks. He was the kingdom's treasure… how could he be so stupid…? The pirate slowed to a walk as his boots clicked against the wooden deck. He began shouting orders to his men to hightail it out of there while the guards were still busy.

Lovino was dropped on a bed that smelled much like the man who'd grabbed him up. He wriggled, struggling to pull the rope off his wrists, however, he failed and the ship began rocking slightly as it began drifting out. He screamed against the cloth on his mouth, but to no avail.

He didn't know how long he'd been lying there, the ship rocking making his stomach turn, before the man came back, "There~ we're as far away as we need to be." He said, untying Lovino's ties and mouth covering.

Lovino promptly leaned over the side of the bed and threw up everything that was in his stomach. He trembled, "Make it stop moving!" he whined loudly, "Oh gods above, I feel sick…"

"Disgusting…" the man said, "I'll get someone to clean that up…" he could be heard moving around the room. He called for a cabin boy, how rushed in to clean up Lovino's mess. "There… now that that's taken care of, I'm captain Dimas, owner of this fine ship and the man you're going to be seeing for now. I've had a nice long run on this ship, but with things getting as dangerous as they are, I can't run the risk of _not_ having a seer on my ship and you're the only one around so… congratulations~"

Lovino just stared into nothing ness, unsure of what to think. "Take me back to the palace!" he hissed, not sure why that was much better of an option. He was going to be used for his power until he died at this rate.

Dimas chuckled and sat down somewhere in the room, "Nah, I'm captain here and I'll give the orders~"

"I said take me back!" he said, trying to make his wavering voice sound stronger.

"No, you're going to be seeing for me."

Lovino growled, "Joke's on you asshole, I can only see things for my brother!"

Dimas just laughed, "That is not what I heard~ you see anything that happens to be decided before you, or anything important – like seeing me coming towards the palace. So, if I were to decide to head home to Portugal and rob the first port city I see, you'd tell me what happens."

Lovino frowned and looked away, sure enough the images appearing before him as Dimas was killed, "That's a stupid idea."

"See~? I knew you'd come in handy." He leaned back, "Just behave and we'll get along just fine."

"You're a disgusting man!" the oracle yelled, getting up out of the bed to stumble around the room and towards the door.

Dimas jumped up and grabbed him into his arms, "If I'm disgusting, then my men are completely putrid. I'd watch myself if I were you. Leaving this room could mean your pristine little asshole becomes a cesspool of semen and disease." He dropped him back on the bed.

Lovino trembled, "you're going to be captured! I'll be rescued and they'll-"

"They'll what…? Take you back home to be locked away in that tower, princess? To be fed the same thing, day in and day out. To be used to your gift to keep your precious little brother's bed full and treasury full and the people of the kingdom fat while you suffer in the dark abyss that is your mind until you finally get so sick of it, you hand yourself from the balcony as your great uncle did?"

The oracle fell silent, staring into the distance as he let those words sink in. His stomach churned again and he dry heaved.

"Just stay here. You'd be better off on this ship any day." The man said. Lovino heard the door swing open and shut, a latch then bolted into place, probably locking him in from the outside.

Lovino choked out a sob and covered his face. The ship creaked and wind blew against the ship. He heard the men outside and for once, he just wished it would be silent.

* * *

_~Lady Pyrien_


	2. Chapter 2

_Woooo, I haven't even started chapter three yet...AND MY FUCKING BACK SPACE KEY BROKE. AGAIN. I literally just replaced it two and a half months ago... fuck alienware..._

_I've started a collaboration SpaMano story with another author and we'll probably begin advertising for it sometime later once we begin posting chapters_

_Anyway, i'm bending history quite a bit for this... braille was invented by Luis Braille in the 1800s but this is considerably not the 1800s... in fact, I don't know what time period it is.. i just write stuff... anyway, here's part 2_

* * *

**The Pirate's Oracle**

**Chapter Two: Braille**

* * *

Lovino's stomach began growling and he whimpered softly. The thought of food made his stomach churn, but he was starving. He hadn't eaten breakfast, nor had he gotten anything since he'd been left in the room. For a while, he'd managed to wander around, carefully shuffling about the room, just looking – so to speak – around at things. He'd found the captain's clothes and some nicnacks, but nothing that would help him escape. Not that anything would even help… Who knows how far away from land he was now… So, with that in mind, he'd sunk back into the blankets and tried to stop his stomach from turning.

The door opened and Lovino jerked upright. The smell of something mouthwatering drew his attention and he bit his lip, knowing that whatever it was, it wasn't fruit and bread.

"Hungry? Sorry about that. We've been short on rations and I can't just go giving out stew at any time I want, not even you." Dimas' voice carried softly. The man sounded tired, leaving Lovino to wonder just what time it was and how much time had passed. It couldn't have been a couple of hours, but with every moment planned out for him, he never had to worry about time.

"You can't even look after me properly, just take me home…" his stomach let out a loud growl in affirmation, which made Lovino's cheeks go red and Dimas burst out in laughter.

The captain's foot steps grew closer and the weight of him sitting on the bed startled Lovino. The oracle tensed, feeling the weight shifting.

"Here, it's cooled down a bit, and I'll be honest, it probably tastes bad, but it's good for you, so eat up." Lovino felt something set down in his lap, warm and the source of that inviting smell.

"What is it…?" he asked, cautiously.

"Stew… The meat is a bit chewy because we had to salt and dry it so it would last, but I'm telling you, our cook knows what he's doing when we have fresher supplies. It's got some carrots, some potatoes, and also sundried tomatoes… I'd eat it before it gets any colder. It's gross cold."

"I'm not allowed to eat this." Lovino said, hurting to even say such a thing, but he should stick to his diet.

Dimas snorted, "Right, because we have an abundance of rabbit food on the ship. Eat that or you starve. Until we make our next port, you get stew and stew… oh, and stew. Learn to enjoy it my friend."

Lovino stared downwards, feeling the warmth of the bowl in his hands. He licked his lips and slowly grasped for the spoon. Once he had it, he lifted a spoonful to his lips and carefully shoveled it into his mouth. The flavor hit him hard, and the textures were new. Once he swallowed, he found himself no longer trying to taste the new flavors as he just spooned bite after bite into his hungry mouth, filling his stomach while he could. Once he couldn't get any more, Dimas moved to help get the last few bites onto the spoon.

"Thank you…" Lovino panted softly, licking his lips, "I don't care what you say, that was delicious…"

"You'll change your tune after the fifth night." He replied, amused.

The oracle just scoffed and lied down, "I would like to take a bath now."

"Wouldn't we all. I have some rose scented water and some cloths, so if you want to bathe, that's as good as you're going to get until our next port."

"That's disgusting!" Lovino cried out, sitting back up to look in the captain's general direction.

Dimas got up and shuffled around the room, "That's our lives. It's not ideal, but there's not much fun about bathing in cold sea water. I could draw you a bath of that if you'd like."

Lovino only grumbled in response and tugged his robes off, leaving him in his shirt wrap and pants. Curling up, the oracle let out a defeated sigh. He was going to die in this dingy room on this nasty ship with these disgusting people.

He felt the bed shifting again as the captain flopped down to curl up, "If you try and kill me in my sleep, I'll know and I'll retaliate. I don't care who you are." Dimas said, his voice tired, "Just sleep and tomorrow we'll begin the seeing."

"Great. I'm so excited." Lovino hissed. He closed his eyes and settled as close to the edge of the bed as possible.

The rocking of the ship turned Lovino's stomach less now and he sighed softly, nuzzling into his pillow. It smelled of that man, and while he hated him, he found it more comforting than the smell of his own room, which smelled too clean for him. He was asleep in minutes.

_Land, the waves licking at its feet. Soldiers standing and ready for battle. Dimas stepping in front of the man Lovino knew well, Antonio. Both stared off. Dimas laughs, but Antonio isn't amused. _

_ Men hold their weapons up towards the captain. Antonio moves. Dimas falls. Blood. _

Lovino sat upright, breathing heavily. His clothing was tangled up against him and the blankets and he whined, pulling off the shirt, leaving him in only the pants.

"Bad dream?" Dimas asked, obviously tired.

"N-no…" he muttered, rubbing his face, "Vision."

"Oh? What of~?"

Lovino sat for a moment in silence, "Your death." He croaked.

A heavy silence fell over the room as Dimas took in what Lovino had just said, "Excuse me?" he said, finally breaking the silence.

The oracle lied back down and closed his eyes, "You heard me. I saw your death. I don't know when, but you step off the ship and you're killed right on the shore. Soldiers coming to get me."

Dimas snorted, "I'd love to see some lousy soldiers come for me." He spoke softly, his voice wavering slightly in the end. He lied back down himself, his breathing forced and controlled.

"It's what you get for taking me…"

"It's what I deserve for offering you a better life than the one you had in exchange for a service? If you were more trustworthy and my crew more trustworthy, I could let you out… but now is not the time for that. Just get some more sleep and try not to wake me again with your mumbling."

"I don't mumble!" Lovino huffed, curling up. Why was this man so infuriating‽ He closed his eyes and wished he could find out where his vision took place so he could just lead the man to that spot and get everything over with. The rocking of the ship eventually lulled him to sleep, being kinder to him now than before.

Lovino awoke again much later. He could feel the bed sheets were cold beside him meaning Dimas was up and had been gone for a while. His stomach was pained with hunger, driving him to sit up and grope at the bedside table, looking to see if there was anything for him to eat. He felt a plate and on it was a couple of pieces of slightly hard bread. He groaned softly and smelled them in hopes they weren't moldy. Luckily, they smelled okay. He tore off bits and pieces and ate them slowly, letting his mind wander over everything that happened. The swaying was beginning to upset his stomach again, but the bread seemed to help quell the feeling for the time being. He finished his meager breakfast and fumbled around the floor, looking for his shirt and robes. After dressing himself, he shuffled around the room, bored. At least in the palace, he had Antonio to tell him stories and nurse maids to read to him and teach him to weave – something he was good at when you gave him big enough threads. He even got to paint. While he knew they were nothing special and probably blobs of color mashed together on the canvas, the feeling of the brush sliding over the canvas, the smell of the paint and thinner, and the momentary feeling of escape were what he loved most about it.

He sighed in frustration finding old papers, useless to him. He couldn't read… He found telescopes and a ton of little things. Nothing of use to him. He brushed his fingers over this and that and paused. One of the books was different. He slid his fingers over the spine. Instead of indented bands and what not, he felt raised bumps. Why was this book different…? He grabbed it off the shelf and opened it up, expecting to find the covers filled with nothing but smooth pages filled with things he could only imagine. Instead, they were covered in the same bumps. He ran his fingers over them and desperately wished to know why.

The door opened behind him and he turned around, "Why is this book different?" he asked instantly, the smell of sea filled the room.

Dimas chuckled, "Nosy brat." He said, pulling the book from Lovino's hands, "I searched everywhere for the small collection I have of these books. I don't even know if the stories are good yet since I haven't read a single one. Since I knew you couldn't see in the conventional sense, I found a man who studies such afflictions and makes life for the blind easier. He taught me how to read bumps." He said, "You don't know how to read them…?"

Lovino frowned, "No… what makes you think I can read…?"

"That's just it… these bumps are so the blind _can_ read!" he turned the book to the front cover and rubbed his finger over the bumps, "Okay, this word is 'The'." He grabbed Lovino's hand and his finger and rubbed it over the word, "T… H… E." he said, his voice filled with a sense of excitement.

The oracle didn't know what to think. There were books he could read on his own? He felt both rage and excitement bubble up inside him. Rage because no one had ever told him before, making him rely on others to read to him. Joy because once he learned to read these bumps, he wouldn't need anyone to read to him again…

"You can teach me to read this, right?" Lovino asked, running his fingers over the bumps.

Dimas snorted, "When I have time, I will. I figured they would have taught you already." He said with a hum.

"I thought you knew about me." Lovino muttered, "I never get to do anything on my own. This would give me more freedom in my room, but it's obviously too much freedom. I couldn't bathe myself until last year when I refused to bathe until they let me hold the cloth. The nurse maid still sits in there to make sure I "do it properly". I couldn't feed myself, dress myself… I barely managed to get those rights… I still can't walk by myself. I'm not allowed to eat meat, fish, sweets. I can't have wine, beer, alcohol in general at all…"

"I used to be sheltered, my brother and I. All we had was each other and our over protective mother. But I always wanted more, you know? I love adventuring. But my brother, he preferred sticking to our mother's rules. He stayed indoors and stuck by her side like the good little boy he is." Dimas said, his voice soft, and slightly resentful.

"Your brother?" Lovino asked.

"I have some time to teach you a few letters." Dimas said, evading the question.

Lovino frowned but shook it off, learning to read on his own far more important than some dirty pirate's personal life, "Fine."

The captain led him over to the bed and the two of them sat down.

Dimas pulled out a piece of paper and began pressing against the back to raise the paper. Once he was finished, he took Lovino's hand and gently brushed his finger over the first letter, "A." he said. He moved to the next, "B." and so on until Lovino had gone over all of them. They reviewed over the first six over and over again until Lovino had them down pact. Lovino was honestly feeling a bit over whelmed. He didn't know how this would help him… He didn't know how to use the bumps yet. How did the letters fit together to form the words? How would he even know what anything was once he figured out which letters were there…?

"I have to get back to work before I'm thrown over board. Keep working on those six." Dimas said, getting up to leave the room.

"But-" the door shut and Lovino huffed, "How is this supposed to help me read…?" he muttered, running his fingers back over the bumps, "A… B… C…" he mumbled, disheartened.

He leaned back against the bed and closed his eyes as he drifted off in thought, letting his hand slide from the page. Lovino began humming to himself. Shoving the page from his lap, he grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around himself tightly like a hug and nuzzled against the pillow behind his head. He sang the song softly and pretended his mother was holding him, rocking him back and forth as the ship swayed. The mens' footsteps became her heartbeat, their voices the people of his palace, tending to him as they did his brother. Tears spilled out onto his cheeks and he whimpered softly, wishing that this was the reality he'd been given.

He wiped his face, breaking from his day dream when somebody knocked something down outside. Lovino let the blanket fall from his shoulders.

The door opened, "I brought food." Dimas' voice said softly.

"Good. I'm starving."

There was a shifting on the bed and a warm bowl was set into the oracle's lap. He slowly ate the food given to him. Once he was finished, he looked towards Dimas, "Tell me a story." He demanded.

"A story…?" Dimas asked as he stripped down to something he could sleep in and clean himself up a bit, "Let's see… oh! I know the perfect one, I guess." He licked his lips, "There was once two brothers. They were as close as brothers could be, but they were very different. You see, the older brother was completely amazing in everything he did. He knew how to climb and hunt and swim. He was never afraid to break the rules. The other followed all the rules religiously. When their mother said to come in, he would. When she told him to sit still, he would.

"One day, they both got in trouble for something the elder brother did and it put a rift between them. They began to fight and despite all attempts to fix their relationship, it was ruined. The eld-"

"I've heard this story." Lovino said, staring in his direction, "Antonio tells it to me all the time."

"Ah, but you see, you've probably only heard the biased version of things." Dimas grinned, "My tale is obviously better because it takes place in the elder brother's point of view. The elder brother got into more trouble than he could handle one day and ran away. He wanted to get out and live and-"

"Hurt people." Lovino snarked.

"No. Well… that's not why he left, but it was bound to happen when his little brother rose up through the military and vowed to kill him. You see, the elder brother was only defending his freedom. Following rules was dull, so he broke as many as possible. He lived his life happy and loved every moment of it. No walls to hold him in and nobody to tell him no."

"Doesn't he want to hurt the hero? To stop him from putting an end to his freedom?"

Dimas chuckled, "Why? The hero lives to see the villain fall, but the villain lives in the moment, doing what he wants or what he thinks is best. I live by that same principle. I won't let some stingy uptight men ruin my fun~"

"You're depraved." Lovino said, "But it sounds like you just told me about yourself anyway. That's hardly a story at all."

"Oh, but it's a story when my brother tells it to you?"

"Brother…" Lovino blinked and looked up, "Antonio is your little brother…?"

"He is. And he joined the military to find me. Unfortunately for him, fortunately for me, he was drafted into being your personal guard. How do you think I was able to imitate that whiny little voice of his so well~?" he said, his voice full of laughter.

Lovino huffed and crossed his arms, "I don't see what's so funny. Antonio's the one that kills you."

A pregnant silence filled the room, "So what gets me killed anyway?"

"It doesn't work like that and I wouldn't tell you anyway. The sooner they kill you, the sooner I'm safe at home."

"You must be wonderful at parties." Dimas hummed, not letting his words affect him, "No fun allowed~"

Lovino just grumbled.

"How about this, you actually help me like I want, and I'll more than happily continue teaching you to read **and **I'll give you every single book I have that you can read."

Lovino frowned and crossed his arms, "Fine." He hissed, "But they're still going to kill you." He said.

"Mmm, not if you do your job right~" Dimas teased, "Now, get some sleep because tomorrow, we have to find out where we should dock that won't get me killed." He said, slipping into the bed. He curled up and closed his eyes.

The oracle stared in his direction, lying down as well.

Dimas opened his eyes and was met with the dull blank eyes of the prince. He shuddered, "Go to sleep and stop staring, that's fucking creepy."

"I can do as I please because no matter what, you need me." Lovino said. If Dimas could hold things against him, he could certainly hold them against the captain!

Dimas snorted, "I could have you sent to the dungeon cells to sit and wait until I need you."

Lovino stared for a bit longer, "You're an asshole." He said, rolling over and closing his eyes. He hated it here, but it could always be worse.

The captain snorted and closed his own eyes once more, "And proud of it princess. Get some sleep now, okay?"

It wasn't long after than both of them were fast asleep.

* * *

_~Lady Pyrien_


End file.
